Natalie Cares
by Marie S Zachary
Summary: What was Natalie thinking when she saw 'Trudy' in that Cafe?
1. Reaction

Natalie stared at the woman in horror. NO! It can't be! She's dead. But at the same time here she was sitting within plain view

Things could get complicated. They would definitely not be the same as they were before. There's no doubt of that. Mr. Monk doesn't do complicated well. She could just see him staring in shock. The words he would speak would be gibberish at best... IF he could speak at all. Maybe she could keep it a secret from him but she knew that was impossible. She knew he had to know.

She had explained that she had to fake her death in order to keep him safe and herself. That didn't add up. Her words made sense but something just didn't click right. Maybe Natalie was just being overly worried but this was her best friend... aside from Julie that she was talking about. This was the guy that was there for her when she really needed him. This was the guy who was loyal to a fault. This was the guy who she knew she could depend on. Natalie groaned. All of this was making her head hurt. She couldn't help it. She loved her best friend. She just had to make sure he found out without being hurt and that somehow everything was alright. Not alright wasn't alright. Not even for a second.

* * *

><p>Disclaimer: I don't own Monk<p>


	2. Outside the libreary

"What are you doing here? Who are you?"

Natalie stared at this woman her stomach in knots.

"W-what are YOU doing here," she asked, "I'm Natalie... I'm friends with Adrian"

"Look," the woman said gently, "I know that it might seem confusing but it's more complicated then you could possibly imagine. So much was happening that would have put him in serious danger. I loved him more then you can possibly imagine and now the danger is over. But you can't tell him something like this by showing him pictures of it. I was going to tell him tonight"

Natalie looked skeptical.

"How are you going to do that without shocking him," she asked, "and I don't mean like before?"

"Well I came up with a story," she said, "I lost my memory."

Natalie sighed. She agreed to go along with it just because she knew it was the only practical solution. Little did she know how much was about to happen.


	3. Within His Sight

Natalie was a jangle of nerves as she looked at her watch.

"Natalie," Monk asked, "everything okay?"

"I... saw someone today," Natalie said, "She... look Mr. Monk sometimes things are not what they seem"

Monk laughed.

"Natalie I'm the WORLD'S GREATEST DETECTIVE so I think I know that," he said smirking.

"Okay good example. So lets say you saw something... maybe a person that you thought was... well... um... but then you found out that this person wasn't... was actually... um... alive but they had lost their memory. Say it was- Mr. Monk... what are you staring at"

Monk couldn't say a word. He had lost his power of speech. There at the Captain's barbeque was the woman he loves. The woman he thought was dead. The woman who made him complete.


	4. Old Lovers Old Friends Something New

The captain saw Monk staring off into space and walked over to him.

"Monk? You okay?" the captain asked his friend concerned.

"Am I okay," Monk asked with a smile, "Leland I'm perfect. Look"

Leland stared in the direction that Monk was staring in and he thought that his heart would stop.

"Oh my GOD," he whispered, "I see it but I do not believe it"

"I know it seems complicated," Trudy said, "I don't even understand it myself. I had just gotten my memory back so I really don't know anything much about it. I don't even know how I lost-"

She was cut off by a pair of lips pressing against hers and a pair of arms holding her tight and she melted in that embrace

Natalie and the captain exchanged glances but didn't say a word. They went to give the couple who had just been reunited some time to be alone together."

"Look," Natalie said to the captain, "I don't know the whole story but I do know two things. First, I know that this is complicated and second Mr. Monk cannot lose her again. That would kill him. Are you catching my drift?"

"Yes Natalie," the captain said, "But you don't need to throw it"

"I mean it would be like-"

"Natalie," Leland said, "I know what you're saying"

"Sorry," Natalie replied, "I didn't mean to ramble"

"Stop apologizing," the captain told him, "You know that you have nothing to apologize for."

Meanwhile over at a private table Trudy and Adrian sat down.

"Do you have any idea how much I missed you," he asked softly.

"As soon as I gained my memory back I missed you too," Trudy said, "I missed you so much you can't even begin to imagine"

"How did you lose your memory," Monk asked his wife.

"I honestly don't even remember," Trudy said, "All I remember is waking up 7 months ago and not having any idea who I was or where I was"

"How did you gain it back," he asked.

"Again I don't know," she said honestly, "It's not all clear to me"

"Well it doesn't even matter," he said kissing her again, "You're here now. That's what's important. I won't lose you again. I won't lose you EVER again"

Meanwhile Natalie and the captain were talking.

"Okay wait," Natalie said, "I don't know how this problem is going to be resolved but I know it has to be resolved somehow. She needs to remember. She need to remember their life together"

"Does that really matter," the captain asked, "She remembers him"

"I guess I see your point," Natalie admitted, "But that's got to be so frustrating to not remember who you are"

"I would imagine so," the captain said, "I'm just happy that she's back. Remember the last time-"

"Don't even remind me," Natalie groaned, "What would you have done if she **had **turned out to be the real Trudy?"

The captain sighed deeply while pondering the question.

"Have a major headache for one thing," he said jokingly. Natalie smirked.

"I'm serious though," Natalie said, "If you found out that she was the real Trudy would you have listened to your heart or your brain"

"My heart," Leland said, "Ever notice how I don't get mad?"

"You never get mad," Natalie asked

_"_No point in it," Leland replied, "if someone is already having a bad day the last thing that need is to be made to feel worse later. I never understood that concept"

"Yeah neither did I," Natalie said, "I mean I guess I get where people were coming from but it never made that much sense to me either"

"Right. Exactly. Anyway if I listened to my brain I'd probably be getting mad all the time. Being a police captain you see HORRIBLE things. It makes you terrified."

"Well yes I would suppose so," Natalie said, "and that feeling can really play on your nerves"

"It really can," Leland replied, "It can make you want to get mad at every turn. Anyway to answer your question, I would have let it go. I couldn't do that to Monk. He's like my brother. He's my best friend and I wouldn't make him lose her. He lost her for a long time. She was what held him together. I wouldn't take that away from him. I couldn't."

"Can I ask you a question," Natalie said.

"I believe you just did," Leland smirked

Natalie rolled her eyes.

"Why did you refer to Mr. Monk as ELECTRIC LOVE once?"

"He never told you that story," Leland asked.

"No. He never did. But I really want to know"

"Trudy had wrongfully been accused of stealing a lipstick from a store, breaking the windows of the store and injuring someone in the store. She had been found guilty and the judge, who incidentally I **hate **sentenced her to a year of a shock bracelet."

"A WHAT," Natalie asked.

"A shock bracelet gives off shocks at random times. The shocks can be anywhere from very minor_, _like your foot fell asleep to severe that can be harsh enough to make you cry. It's safe and all but it's painful. Well she couldn't have been wearing the bracelet any more than seven hours when she was cooking dinner, trying to distract herself from the shocks. An awful shock went off and it caused her to drop the glass bowl causing it to split in half. He ran into the room and seeing the tears running down her face he couldn't take it anymore. The bracelet was monitored. If someone hadn't been wearing it they would know. It could be off for a minute at a time without the glitch showing up on the computer screen. Trudy pointed that out to him as she saw him going to take it off of her. His response was "oh **someone **will be" which is when she saw him taking off his shoes and socks. Yes shoe**s **and sock**s **as in multiple because two is an even number even though it only went around **one **ankle."

"Wait a minute," Natalie said, "Are you saying germaphobic terrific of pain Mr. Monk took a shock bracelet off of Trudy which was **clearly **painful and was obviously worn by another person, her, and put it on his own self?"

"Well he loves Trudy," Leland said, "I would do the same thing for Karen... or Jennifer or Jarred or Max"

"Jennifer?"

"She was Karen and my first child. She was kidnapped about a month before Trudy 'died'"

"Why didn't you use Mr. Monk to help find her," Natalie asked.

"I did," Leland said, "Do you think I'm an idiot? Even Monk is stumped on this case."

"Mr. Monk... stumped on a case? That's just weird"

"He may be a genius but he's NOT GOD," Leland said

Natalie laughed slightly.

"Please tell me you didn't give up on her case," she said.

"Again do you think I'm an idiot," Leland said, "Do you think I want to be sentenced to DEATH BY A PISSED OFF WIFE? Also I love Jennifer. I will not give up on her being found. The case is still going full strong. We won't stop until we find her"

He didn't say any more but she knew he was thinking _or her body._

"You know most of the time things tend to sometimes work out well," Natalie said.

"Most of the time things tend to sometimes work out well," Leland repeated slowly, "Isn't that kind of a contradiction?"

"I guess," Natalie said, "I was just trying to encourage you"

Leland smiled.

"Thank you Natalie," he said, "That's very kind of you. You're a good friend"

Natalie smiled.

"So are you," she told him.


End file.
